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17
Memorandum concerning the following Report and Tables:
The Artizans and Labourers' Dwellings Improvement Act, 1875,
resulted in your Medical Officer, Mr. Liddle, representing certain
property under the Act in 1877.
In the same year Sir Richard A. Cross (the Home Secretary) issued
a Provisional Order—and the schemes for the demolition of the
condemned areas were proceeded with.
In 1881, re-building upon one of the Sites took place, viz. :—Upon the
Glasshouse Street area.
I have, therefore, in the following lists included this area, and afterwards
all other property of any significance which has to any extent
affected the housing of the working classes.
The Tables, therefore, which accompanied my Report, a copy of
which was sent to the London County Council, have been considerably
enlarged.
Report by the Medical Officer of Health for the Whitechapel District
Board, of Works—prepared by Instruction of the Board—and
presented to the Board on the 18th December, 1899.
Subject:—Information requested for the Parliamentary Committee
of the London County Council as to "accommodation
provided for re-housing persons of the Labouring
Class who are displaced by the Works of Railway and
other undertakings" in the Whitechapel District.
The information asked for is requested to be arranged
in Tabular form and to comprise the last ten years operations
of the description mentioned. The Clerk of the
Council on the 15th November, 1899, wrote to the Board
for the information.
I have had as much of the required particulars prepared as will be
covered by the period mentioned above. Generally it may be stated
that commercial enterprise has been the motive power which has produced
new buildings for old—or buildings where none previously
existed.
Railway Improvements have not seriously affected the Whitechapel
District from the point of view now under consideration. It were well
to mention, however, that within the past 20 years over 3,000 persons
were disturbed when the London and Tilbury Railway Company
constructed their warehouses, &c., within the Whitechapel District.
No provision was specially made to re-house these people.
Upon Page 1 of the Tabular Return will be found the chief items
relating to house construction by a Railway Company. For re-housing
persons to correspond with those displaced when the Great Eastern
Railway Company pulled down houses in and around Bishopsgate
Street, the Company erected three Blocks of Buildings within the
District of Whitechapel which, together, accommodate 1,200 persons.
This accommodation was provided for by the acquisition of vacant land
entirely. On the other hand 84 persons have been disturbed by the
London and North Western Railway Company without being provided
for. It is only right to explain that the Company pulled the 10 houses
down in compliance with Sanitary Notices served upon them by
direction of the Board.